2 While we pursued the horsemen of the north,3 He slily stole away and left his men:4 Whereat the great Lord of Northumberland,5 Whose warlike ears could never brook retreat,6 Cheer'd up the drooping army; and himself,7 Lord Clifford and Lord Stafford, all abreast,8 Charged our main battle's front, and breaking in9 Were by the swords of common soldiers slain.

EDWARD

10 Lord Stafford's father, Duke of Buckingham,11 Is either slain or wounded dangerously;12 I cleft his beaver with a downright blow:13 That this is true, father, behold his blood.

MONTAGUE

14 And, brother, here's the Earl of Wiltshire's blood,15 Whom I encounter'd as the battles join'd.

RICHARD

16 Speak thou for me and tell them what I did.

Throwing down SOMERSET's head

YORK

17 Richard hath best deserved of all my sons.18 But is your grace dead, my Lord of Somerset?

NORFOLK

19 Such hope have all the line of John of Gaunt!

RICHARD

20 Thus do I hope to shake King Henry's head.

WARWICK

21 And so do I. Victorious Prince of York,22 Before I see thee seated in that throne23 Which now the house of Lancaster usurps,24 I vow by heaven these eyes shall never close.25 This is the palace of the fearful king,26 And this the regal seat: possess it, York;27 For this is thine and not King Henry's heirs'

YORK

28 Assist me, then, sweet Warwick, and I will;29 For hither we have broken in by force.

33 And when the king comes, offer no violence,34 Unless he seek to thrust you out perforce.

YORK

35 The queen this day here holds her parliament,36 But little thinks we shall be of her council:37 By words or blows here let us win our right.

RICHARD

38 Arm'd as we are, let's stay within this house.

WARWICK

39 The bloody parliament shall this be call'd,40 Unless Plantagenet, Duke of York, be king,41 And bashful Henry deposed, whose cowardice42 Hath made us by-words to our enemies.

YORK

43 Then leave me not, my lords; be resolute;44 I mean to take possession of my right.

WARWICK

45 Neither the king, nor he that loves him best,46 The proudest he that holds up Lancaster,47 Dares stir a wing, if Warwick shake his bells.48 I'll plant Plantagenet, root him up who dares:49 Resolve thee, Richard; claim the English crown.

KING HENRY VI

50 My lords, look where the sturdy rebel sits,51 Even in the chair of state: belike he means,52 Back'd by the power of Warwick, that false peer,53 To aspire unto the crown and reign as king.54 Earl of Northumberland, he slew thy father.55 And thine, Lord Clifford; and you both have vow'd revenge56 On him, his sons, his favourites and his friends.

62 Patience is for poltroons, such as he:63 He durst not sit there, had your father lived.64 My gracious lord, here in the parliament65 Let us assail the family of York.

NORTHUMBERLAND

66 Well hast thou spoken, cousin: be it so.

KING HENRY VI

67 Ah, know you not the city favours them,68 And they have troops of soldiers at their beck?

EXETER

69 But when the duke is slain, they'll quickly fly.

KING HENRY VI

70 Far be the thought of this from Henry's heart,71 To make a shambles of the parliament-house!72 Cousin of Exeter, frowns, words and threats73 Shall be the war that Henry means to use.74 Thou factious Duke of York, descend my throne,75 and kneel for grace and mercy at my feet;76 I am thy sovereign.

YORK

77 I am thine.

EXETER

78 For shame, come down: he made thee Duke of York.

YORK

79 'Twas my inheritance, as the earldom was.

EXETER

80 Thy father was a traitor to the crown.

WARWICK

81 Exeter, thou art a traitor to the crown82 In following this usurping Henry.

CLIFFORD

83 Whom should he follow but his natural king?

WARWICK

84 True, Clifford; and that's Richard Duke of York.

KING HENRY VI

85 And shall I stand, and thou sit in my throne?

YORK

86 It must and shall be so: content thyself.

WARWICK

87 Be Duke of Lancaster; let him be king.

WESTMORELAND

88 He is both king and Duke of Lancaster;89 And that the Lord of Westmoreland shall maintain.

WARWICK

90 And Warwick shall disprove it. You forget91 That we are those which chased you from the field92 And slew your fathers, and with colours spread93 March'd through the city to the palace gates.

NORTHUMBERLAND

94 Yes, Warwick, I remember it to my grief;95 And, by his soul, thou and thy house shall rue it.

WESTMORELAND

96 Plantagenet, of thee and these thy sons,97 Thy kinsman and thy friends, I'll have more lives98 Than drops of blood were in my father's veins.

CLIFFORD

99 Urge it no more; lest that, instead of words,100 I send thee, Warwick, such a messenger101 As shall revenge his death before I stir.

WARWICK

102 Poor Clifford! how I scorn his worthless threats!

YORK

103 Will you we show our title to the crown?104 If not, our swords shall plead it in the field.

KING HENRY VI

105 What title hast thou, traitor, to the crown?106 Thy father was, as thou art, Duke of York;107 Thy grandfather, Roger Mortimer, Earl of March:108 I am the son of Henry the Fifth,109 Who made the Dauphin and the French to stoop110 And seized upon their towns and provinces.

WARWICK

111 Talk not of France, sith thou hast lost it all.

KING HENRY VI

112 The lord protector lost it, and not I:113 When I was crown'd I was but nine months old.

RICHARD

114 You are old enough now, and yet, methinks, you lose.115 Father, tear the crown from the usurper's head.

EDWARD

116 Sweet father, do so; set it on your head.

MONTAGUE

117 Good brother, as thou lovest and honourest arms,118 Let's fight it out and not stand cavilling thus.

RICHARD

119 Sound drums and trumpets, and the king will fly.

YORK

120 Sons, peace!

KING HENRY VI

121 Peace, thou! and give King Henry leave to speak.

WARWICK

122 Plantagenet shall speak first: hear him, lords;123 And be you silent and attentive too,124 For he that interrupts him shall not live.

KING HENRY VI

125 Think'st thou that I will leave my kingly throne,126 Wherein my grandsire and my father sat?127 No: first shall war unpeople this my realm;128 Ay, and their colours, often borne in France,129 And now in England to our heart's great sorrow,130 Shall be my winding-sheet. Why faint you, lords?131 My title's good, and better far than his.

WARWICK

132 Prove it, Henry, and thou shalt be king.

KING HENRY VI

133 Henry the Fourth by conquest got the crown.

YORK

134 'Twas by rebellion against his king.

KING HENRY VI

Aside135 I know not what to say; my title's weak.--136 Tell me, may not a king adopt an heir?

YORK

137 What then?

KING HENRY VI

138 An if he may, then am I lawful king;139 For Richard, in the view of many lords,140 Resign'd the crown to Henry the Fourth,141 Whose heir my father was, and I am his.

YORK

142 He rose against him, being his sovereign,143 And made him to resign his crown perforce.

WARWICK

144 Suppose, my lords, he did it unconstrain'd,145 Think you 'twere prejudicial to his crown?

EXETER

146 No; for he could not so resign his crown147 But that the next heir should succeed and reign.

KING HENRY VI

148 Art thou against us, Duke of Exeter?

EXETER

149 His is the right, and therefore pardon me.

YORK

150 Why whisper you, my lords, and answer not?

EXETER

151 My conscience tells me he is lawful king.

KING HENRY VI

Aside152 All will revolt from me, and turn to him.

NORTHUMBERLAND

153 Plantagenet, for all the claim thou lay'st,154 Think not that Henry shall be so deposed.

WARWICK

155 Deposed he shall be, in despite of all.

NORTHUMBERLAND

156 Thou art deceived: 'tis not thy southern power,157 Of Essex, Norfolk, Suffolk, nor of Kent,158 Which makes thee thus presumptuous and proud,159 Can set the duke up in despite of me.

CLIFFORD

160 King Henry, be thy title right or wrong,161 Lord Clifford vows to fight in thy defence:162 May that ground gape and swallow me alive,163 Where I shall kneel to him that slew my father!

186 Be thou a prey unto the house of York,187 And die in bands for this unmanly deed!

CLIFFORD

188 In dreadful war mayst thou be overcome,189 Or live in peace abandon'd and despised!

Exeunt NORTHUMBERLAND, CLIFFORD, and WESTMORELAND

WARWICK

190 Turn this way, Henry, and regard them not.

EXETER

191 They seek revenge and therefore will not yield.

KING HENRY VI

192 Ah, Exeter!

WARWICK

193 Why should you sigh, my lord?

KING HENRY VI

194 Not for myself, Lord Warwick, but my son,195 Whom I unnaturally shall disinherit.196 But be it as it may: I here entail197 The crown to thee and to thine heirs for ever;198 Conditionally, that here thou take an oath199 To cease this civil war, and, whilst I live,200 To honour me as thy king and sovereign,201 And neither by treason nor hostility202 To seek to put me down and reign thyself.

218 Who can be patient in such extremes?219 Ah, wretched man! would I had died a maid220 And never seen thee, never borne thee son,221 Seeing thou hast proved so unnatural a father222 Hath he deserved to lose his birthright thus?223 Hadst thou but loved him half so well as I,224 Or felt that pain which I did for him once,225 Or nourish'd him as I did with my blood,226 Thou wouldst have left thy dearest heart-blood there,227 Rather than have that savage duke thine heir228 And disinherited thine only son.

PRINCE EDWARD

229 Father, you cannot disinherit me:230 If you be king, why should not I succeed?

233 Enforced thee! art thou king, and wilt be forced?234 I shame to hear thee speak. Ah, timorous wretch!235 Thou hast undone thyself, thy son and me;236 And given unto the house of York such head237 As thou shalt reign but by their sufferance.238 To entail him and his heirs unto the crown,239 What is it, but to make thy sepulchre240 And creep into it far before thy time?241 Warwick is chancellor and the lord of Calais;242 Stern Falconbridge commands the narrow seas;243 The duke is made protector of the realm;244 And yet shalt thou be safe? such safety finds245 The trembling lamb environed with wolves.246 Had I been there, which am a silly woman,247 The soldiers should have toss'd me on their pikes248 Before I would have granted to that act.249 But thou preferr'st thy life before thine honour:250 And seeing thou dost, I here divorce myself251 Both from thy table, Henry, and thy bed,252 Until that act of parliament be repeal'd253 Whereby my son is disinherited.254 The northern lords that have forsworn thy colours255 Will follow mine, if once they see them spread;256 And spread they shall be, to thy foul disgrace257 And utter ruin of the house of York.258 Thus do I leave thee. Come, son, let's away;259 Our army is ready; come, we'll after them.

KING HENRY VI

260 Stay, gentle Margaret, and hear me speak.

QUEEN MARGARET

261 Thou hast spoke too much already: get thee gone.

KING HENRY VI

262 Gentle son Edward, thou wilt stay with me?

QUEEN MARGARET

263 Ay, to be murder'd by his enemies.

PRINCE EDWARD

264 When I return with victory from the field265 I'll see your grace: till then I'll follow her.

QUEEN MARGARET

266 Come, son, away; we may not linger thus.

Exeunt QUEEN MARGARET and PRINCE EDWARD

KING HENRY VI

267 Poor queen! how love to me and to her son268 Hath made her break out into terms of rage!269 Revenged may she be on that hateful duke,270 Whose haughty spirit, winged with desire,271 Will cost my crown, and like an empty eagle272 Tire on the flesh of me and of my son!273 The loss of those three lords torments my heart:274 I'll write unto them and entreat them fair.275 Come, cousin you shall be the messenger.